Used oil filters from automotive vehicles normally contain a significant quantity of residual oil and therefore may be characterized as toxic or hazardous waste items. Such oil filters cannot be discarded in ordinary waste containers for dumping with other non-toxic waste in a landfill. Instead, used oil filters must be hauled away from lube shops, auto dealers, and service stations, etc. by costly toxic waste disposal services which collect and handle toxic materials at considerable expense. Unfortunately, despite the significant publicity and increasing levels of governmental regulation characterizing used oil filters as a toxic waste material, the cost and inconvenience of special handling for disposal frequently results in dumping of oil filters with other non-toxic trash. Moreover, used oil filters are largely hollow in construction and thus, when discarded, constitute relatively voluminous items. Since trash disposal fees are often charged on a volumetric basis, disposal of a large number of used oil filters from an automotive service facility can be relatively costly.
In recent years, increasing attention has been directed toward removing residual oil from used oil filters so that the recovered oil can be recycled and further to permit the oil filter to be inexpensively discarded as a non-toxic waste product. Such recovery of the used oil has traditionally been accomplished by orienting the filter over a collection pan or basin and then allowing the oil to drain. However, tests have shown that a significant amount of oil will remain in the filter even after a prolonged drain period of several days. Moreover, in an automotive service facility wherein a large number of oil filters are to be discarded, draining oil filters can occupy an objectionable amount of space.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a compact device for quickly and easily recovering a substantial majority of the residual oil within a used oil filter to permit oil recycling and to convert used oil filters to a conventional non-toxic trash item for inexpensive disposal. Moreover, there is a further need for a device to reduce the volume of a used oil filter, thereby reducing the trash volume generated from automotive service facilities and the like. Additionally, there is a need for such a device which is compact and light in weight, quiet and fast in operation and easy to operate within a normal automotive service shop environment. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides other related advantages.